Strike planned by French prison guards after attack by Qaeda inmate

12th January 2018, 0 comments

Labour unions called Friday for a "total blockade" at prisons across France on Monday after three guards were hurt by a German inmate being held for plotting the deadly 2002 suicide bombing at a Tunisian synagogue.

The Ufap-Unsa and CGT unions said the blade attack at the Vendin-le-Vieil prison illustrated an unacceptable "laxity" concerning the treatment of violent criminals.

Islamic convert Christian Ganczarski, serving an 18-year sentence over the blast in Djerba that killed 21 people, launched himself at the guards after learning he might face extradition to the US in connection with 9/11 investigations, according to union sources.

The former top Al-Qaeda militant was serving out his term at the high-security prison which will soon be housing Salah Abdeslam, the sole surviving suspect in the November 2015 Paris attacks which left 130 people dead, during his trial in Belgium.

The unions have demanded to meet with justice minister Nicole Belloubet, who has said she will visit the Vendin-le-Vieil prison on Tuesday and has ordered an inquiry into the attack.

Unions also want the dismissal of the prison director after Ganczarski's detention terms were eased, even though he had been placed in solitary confinement after surveillance indicated he was planning an attack.

"Prison guards, who know inmates best, who see them all day long, are not there only to open and close doors: yet they are not being listened to," said Christopher Dorangeville of the CGT.